HP University prof suspended for poll code violation

Bhanu P Lohumi

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Tribune News Service

Shimla, May 31

The executive committee of Himachal Pradesh University (HPU) today suspended Prof Pramod Sharma of the MBA department on the directions of the Election Commission (EC) for allegedly campaigning for the BJP in the Lok Sabha poll.

Some Congress leaders had complained against Professor Sharma, pleading that it was the violation of model code of conduct.

The EC took cognisance of the complaint and ordered action. The matter was referred to Himachal Pradesh University and the EC decided to suspend him and also constituted a five-member committee for charge-sheeting him as per the ordinance of the university. Sharma had contested the 2017 elections as the BJP candidate from Shimla (Rural) and lost to Vikramaditya Singh, son of former Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh.

Meanwhile, the EC, which met under the chairmanship of Vice-Chancellor Prof Sikander Kumar, gave its approval to release Rs 77 lakh to the Noida authority as advance to lease the Resource Centre of HPU for distance education and open learning there.

The lease was given for 99 years and the place had become a white elephant as the HPU could not start courses outside the state, sources said. They added that after the payment of the full lease amount, the HPU would now rent the building to the CBSE, which would fetch an additional amount of over Rs 2 crore for the university. The council decided to give the sanitation work to the Sulabh International Organisation, besides approving two chairs — Swami Vivekananda and Dr Keshav Baliram Hedgewar.

The council approved to give a chance to UG students, who completed graduation before 1990, to improve the division and gave its nod to all decisions taken by the academic council sub-committees regarding the syllabi of undergraduate, postgraduate and diploma courses.

The council approved to sign an MoU by the university with the UGC with regard to new instructions for the human resource development centers throughout the country.

The council also approved the recommendations of the selection committees under the Career Advancement Scheme (CAS) promoting Dr Arti Dhawan Pandit (commerce), Dr Kuldeep Katoch and Dr Ajay Kumar Atri (education), Dr Anita Sharma (psychology) and Dr Vikas Dogra (journalism and mass communication) as professors.